back to meal planning.....JAN 13-31

2021

(JANUARY 13 - 31)

Planned out meals for the remainder of January and doing a grocery pick-up tomorrow. Now that the holidays are over, I’m ready to get back on track with being more organized with meal planning which really helps cut our food budget. Here’s what’s on the menu to finish out January. (I don’t assign specific days for meals, but have all the ingredients on hand for whatever we are in the mood for that day or what meal I have time to cook.) 

I just got a Dinnerly shipment, so I'll be making those 3 meals first.

- Dinnerly meal

- Dinnerly meal

- Dinnerly meal

- Crock Pot Pork Butt (x2 meals)

- (Pork Carnitas)

- (Pork BBQ sandwiches)

- Wings & Poppers

- Shrimp Tostadas

- Grilled Chicken Caprese Salad

- Hungry Jack Casserole

- Beef Stew

- Pork Loin, Salad, Baked Sweet Potatoes 

- Crispy Ranch Pork Chops

- Spaghetti & Meatballs

- Pork & Poblano Tacos

- Burgers & Fries

- Clam Chowder

- Caprese Chicken w/Salad

- Baked Oysters 

- unplanned day

I feel much more organized and I definitely save money on the grocery budget using a planned menu, so hopefully I’ll keep it up! I will do a follow up post at the end of the month!

 

{budget life}

-BUDGET LIFE-

First budget update for 2021.......

Dave Ramsey's Baby Steps:

1. Save $1000 in a beginner Emergency Fund  = COMPLETE
2. Pay off all debt = *ZERO debt except for the SUV (2 yrs left)
3. Save 6 months (living expenses) emergency fund = COMPLETE
4. Invest 15% of your income for retirement **
5. Save for your kid's college fund = N/A
6. Pay off your house early = PAID
7. Build wealth & Give freely **

I set a combined savings goal for 2020 and saved 91% of that goal!!

MONEY SAVINGS CHALLENGE

I worked on (2) $1000 money saving challenges in 2020. I completed one = $1000 and saved $700 on the second one. I used the $700 in October to cash flow our little getaway! I used the $1000 one as part of cash flowing Christmas expenses. I budgeted for Christmas and stuck to it!! It's a great feeling on December 26th knowing everything is paid for! 

I have started my first $1000 money saving challenge for 2021 and have a $200 balance as of today.

SINKING FUNDS

I have a Sinking Fund going for our little kitchen refresh which should get started soon. 

-Regular Monthly Budget-

I'm still doing @thebudgetmom's Budget By Paycheck budgeting system. After a year of sticking to the tracking spending and finding a place for our money to go each month, I feel very accomplished and on top of our finances. I still have things to learn, but this system seems to work best for me and this is the most consistent I've been with budgeting in awhile. 

[baby it's COLD outside]

feels like snow....❄️❄️❄️

#winter #january2021 #snow#feelslikesnow #winterchalk#januarychalkboard #chalk#chalkboard #raedunnmug#babyitscoldoutside

outside my window....

 

new feeder...new friends 🐦💙

 #inmybackyard #feedersofinstagram#feeder #birdfeeder #birdwatching#bluejaysofinstagram #bluejay#woodpecker #sparrows #nature#thelittlethings

Word of the Year: Perspective

Shew!....what a year! While I was thinking about how crazy, weird, sad, and even scary this year has been, still so many awesome memories started popping in my mind from this past year. One of the biggest bright spots in 2020 was the birth of Kole. What joy he has brought to us! My year was also sprinkled with lots of time spent with my family, many hours with the grandkids, just soaking up the smiles and hugs, and savoring any time we got together. I missed greatly taking a big vacation- but thankful we did go on two mini- getaways. I miss work - after 17 years at the bed and breakfast, it was over just like that. I’m sad I’m missing so much time with Mom and Dad and the rest of the family again after going a few months of all of us being together. I’m normally a pretty optimistic person, but this year has done something to me. It's changed my outlook on many things, it's made me fearful at times, it's caused my feelings to be all over the place. I overthink things, I doubt myself, I'm just not the same person I used to be.

A few years ago, I started picking a word for the year. 

This year I chose......PERSPECTIVE.

Every day is a gift from God, an opportunity, and what we do with it and how we look at it is up to us. Our perspective on things can change how we think and feel. 

This picture is bittersweet.....at first look it makes me want to cry that this is as close as Mom and Dad get to a visit at my house, but it melts my heart to see their happy faces talking to Kole through the glass. Today, I’ll count this as a joy!!! ❤️❤️❤️ 

We can’t always change our circumstances, but we can change our perspective. I am praying that I will stop dwelling on the negative and instead, look for the blessings each day has to offer. 🙏🏻❤️🙌🏻